The transition from the end of the Ordovician to the beginning of the Silurian Period is characterized by the glaciation of the Gondwana paleocontinent, eustatic sea level change, a perturbation to the global carbon cycle and one of the ve major mass extinctions of the Phanerozoic Eon. Due to signi cant sea level fall, the Ordovician-Silurian (O-S) boundary is often marked by hiatus and exposure in the shallow marine geologic record (e.g., Copper et al. [2013]). Two locations that host stratigraphic succession close to the boudary are Anticosti Basin of Quebec (Canada, e.g., Desrochers et al. [2010]), and the carbonate mounds of the Siljan ring district (Dalarna County, Sweden, e.g., Ebbestad et al. [2015]). The exact timing and dynamics of the glaciation and mass extinction are yet to be understood. Similarly, the interplay between those events and the carbon cycle perturbation are still unclear. As a result, there is a serious need for radiometric age constraints in this crucial part of the Paleozoic Era. The acquisition of more radiometric dates, achieved in this study, aims to address the present dearth of absolute dates close to the boundary. The dates produced in this study represent the first modern geochronologic constraints on the O-S boundary, leveraging the development of the EARTHTIME initiative and the latest U-Pb dating techniques that have improved accuracy and allowed for dating of single zircon crystals at <=0.1% precision level. Here I present two new U-Pb zircon ages obtained via bentonite dating. The first bentonite, 443.61+-0.52 Ma (2, including analytical, tracer calibration and decay constant uncertainties) was collected from the base of the Lousy Cove Member, Ellis Bay Formation (Anticosti Island, Quebec, Canada). The second one, 443.28+-0.50 Ma (including analytical, tracer calibration and decay constant uncertainties) comes from a karstic void within the Boda Core Facies of the Boda Formation (Dalarna County, Sweden). U-Pb geochronology (chemical abrasion, isotope dilution, thermal ionization mass spectrometry: CA-ID-TIMS) on single zircons was used to obtain these ages. These results are the closest radiometric ages to the current O-S boundary (compared to any time constraints in the 2012 Geologic Time Scale) and allow to signifcantly reduce the uncertainty of the current age boundary (443.8+-1.5, Cohen et al. [2018]). Furthermore these absolute ages have been used to make models that explore drivers of Earth system change, such as an end-Ordovician global carbon cycle perturbation. / Graduate / 2022-07-07

abstract: A mineral’s helium content reflects a balance between two competing processes: accumulation by radioactive decay and temperature-dependent diffusive loss. (U-Th)/He dating of zircon and other uranium and thorium-bearing minerals provides insight into the temperature histories of rocks at or near Earth’s surface that informs geoscientists’ understanding of tectonic and climate-driven exhumation, magmatic activity, and other thermal events. The crystal structure and chemistry of minerals affect helium diffusion kinetics, recorded closure temperatures, and interpretations of (U-Th)/He datasets. I used empirical and experimental methods to investigate helium systematics in two minerals chronometers: zircon and xenotime. The same radioactivity that makes zircon a valuable chronometer damages its crystal structure over time and changes zircon helium kinetics. I used a zircon, titanite, and apatite (U-Th)/He dataset combined with previously published data and a new thermal model to place empirical constraints on the closure temperature for helium in a suite of variably damaged zircon crystals from the McClure Mountain syenite of Colorado. Results of this study suggest that the widely-used zircon damage accumulation and annealing model (ZRDAAM) does not accurately predict helium closure temperatures for a majority of the dated zircons. Detailed Raman maps of Proterozoic zircon crystals from the Lyon Mountain Granite of New York document complex radiation damage zoning. Models based on these results suggest that most ancient zircons are likely to exhibit intracrystalline variations in helium diffusivity due to radiation damage zoning, which may, in part, explain discrepancies between my empirical findings and ZRDAAM. Zircon crystallography suggests that helium diffusion should be fastest along the crystallographic c-axis. I used laser depth profiling to show that diffusion is more strongly anisotropic than previously recognized. These findings imply that crystal morphology affects the closure temperature for helium in crystalline zircon. Diffusivity and the magnitude of diffusive anisotropy decrease with low doses of radiation damage. Xenotime would make a promising (U-Th)/He thermochronometer if its helium kinetics were better known. I performed classic step-wise degassing experiments to characterize helium diffusion in xenotime FPX-1. Results suggest that this xenotime sample is sensitive to exceptionally low temperatures (∼50 °C) and produces consistent (U-Th)/He dates. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Geological Sciences 2019

abstract: Establishing the timing of impact crater formation is essential to exploring the relationship between bolide impact and biological evolution, and constraining the tempo of planetary surface evolution. Unfortunately, precise and accurate impact geochronology can be challenging. Many of the rock products of impact (impactites) contain relict, pre-impact phases that may have had their isotopic systematics completely reset during the impact event, only partially reset, or not reset at all. Of the many isotopic chronometers that have been used to date impactites, the U/Pb zircon chronometer (ZrnPb) seems least susceptible to post-impact disturbances, and ZrnPb dates are typically much more precise than those obtained using other chronometers. However, the ZrnPb system is so resistant to resetting that relict zircons in impactites often yield dates that reflect the igneous or metamorphic ages of the target rocks rather than the age of the impact itself. The present study was designed to answer a simple question: is there a straightforward sample collection and analysis strategy for high-accuracy ZrnPb dating of an impact structure if the impactites collected from it may contain inherited zircons? To study this, ZrnPb dates were determined for impactites from a single crater with a well-constrained impact age: the West Clearwater Lake impact structure, located at Lake Wiyâshâkimî, Québec, Canada. The amount of ZrnPb resetting and the mechanisms responsible for resetting varied amongst the samples. Each sample characteristically contained either: newly crystallized zircons from the impact melt ("neocrystalline"), relict zircons ~50-100% reset, or, relict zircons ~0-50% reset. The variably reset relict zircons define a discordia line from ~2700 Ma to ~286 Ma – consistent with the ages of the target rock and the impact, respectively (Schmieder et al., 2015a; Simard, 2004). ZrnPb measurements from the neocrystalline zircons provided a new preferred impact age of 286.64 ± 0.35 Ma (2σ), a ~10x improvement in precision. The characteristics of the West Clearwater ZrnPb data vary between samples yet become easily interpretable as a whole, showing that efforts to measure robust, precise impact ages benefit from strategies that prioritize applying multiple analytical techniques to multiple types of impactite from the same crater. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Geological Sciences 2019

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / A broad range of samples were collected from the Huron-Erie Lobe, Lake Michigan Lobe, Saginaw Lobe, and Tipton Till Plain of northern Indiana to determine the provenance of Laurentide Ice Sheet till in the Midwest U.S. during the Illinoian and Wisconsinan glaciations. U-Pb age distributions from approximately 300 detrital zircons (DZ) were used as provenance indicators for each till sample. Till from the Lake Michigan Lobe and was found to be largely homogenized. The distinct lobe DZ age distributions are the Lake Michigan Lobe till with a dominant ~1465 Ma peak, the northern Huron-Erie Lobe till with a dominant ~1060 Ma and a secondary peak at ~1450 Ma, the southern Huron-Erie Lobe till with nearly equal peaks at ~1435 Ma, ~1175 Ma, and ~1065 Ma, and the southern Saginaw Lobe till with a dominant peak at ~1095 Ma. Those four DZ age distributions were treated as endmembers in a nonlinear least-squares mixing model to calculate the contribution of each lobe to till in the Tipton Till Plain. Huron-Erie and Saginaw lobe tills were found to be the primary components of the Tipton Till Plain, and Lake Michigan Lobe till was only found in the western Tipton Till Plain. Zircons from the Saginaw Lobe till increased 39 % in the eastern Tipton Till Plain between the Illinoisan and Wisconsinan glaciations. The mixing model was also applied to relate the DZ age distributions of the lobes to bedrock within and near their flow paths. When comparing nearby bedrock to each lobe’s till, mixing model results, yield an approximate maximum transport distance between 500 and 630 kilometers for the matrix vii fraction of till in the Lake Michigan, Huron-Erie, and Saginaw lobes. Samples for the southern Huron-Erie Lobe indicate that the most of the zircon ages within the southern Huron-Erie Lobe till in Indiana were specifically entrained between Niagara County, New York and east-central Indiana. Within the model’s error, 93 – 100 % of the detrital zircons in each of the three lobes are relatable to nearby Paleozoic and Precambrian sedimentary and metamorphic bedrock formations.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Ceramics have been extensively used in aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy industries due to their unique combination of mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties. The objective of this thesis is to develop an extrusion based ceramic 3D printing process to digitally produce a casting mold. To achieve the objective, an in-house designed ceramic 3D printer was developed by converting a filament based plastic 3D printer. For mold making applications, zircon was selected because it is an ultra-high temperature ceramic with high toughness and good refractory properties. Additionally, alumina, bioglass, and zirconia slurries were formulated and used as the feedstock material for the ceramic 3D printer. The developed 3D printing system was used to demonstrate successful printing of special feature parts such as thin-walled high aspect ratio structures and biomimetically inspired complex structures. Also, proof of concept with regard to the application of 3D printing for producing zircon molds and casting of metal parts was also successfully demonstrated. To characterize the printed parts, microhardness test, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were conducted. The zircon samples showed an increase in hardness value with an initial increase in heat treatment temperature followed by a drop due to the development of porosity in the microstructure, caused by the decomposition of the binder. The peak hardness value for zircon was observed to be 101±10 HV0.2. Similarly, the microhardness values of the other 3D printed ceramic specimens were observed to increase from 37±3 to 112±5 HV0.2 for alumina, 23±5 to 35±1 HV0.2 for bioglass, and 22±5 to 31±3 HV0.2 for zirconia, before and after the heat-treatment process, respectively. Finally, a system model for the ceramic 3D printing system was developed through the application of the model-based systems engineering (MBSE) approach using the MagicGrid framework. Through the system engineering effort, a logical level solution architecture was modeled, which captured the different system requirements, the system behaviors, and the system functionalities. Also, a traceability matrix for the system from a very abstract logical level to the definition of physical requirements for the subsystems was demonstrated.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Tills for this study were analyzed from sites in East Antarctica (EA), West Antarctica (WA) and along a transect in the Ross Sea. Particle size, sand petrography, and detrital zircons were used to provide new information on the subglacial geology of Antarctica, as well as assisting in the reconstruction of Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) ice flow paths. Statistical analyses using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S test) reveal that EA and WA zircon age distributions are distinct at a P-value <0.05. This makes it possible to trace the unique signatures from EA and WA into the Ross Sea.

No description available.

The Cedar Mountain Formation contains the most diverse record of Early Cretaceous dinosaurs in the western hemisphere. However, analyses of its faunas have been hindered because 1) most taxa are based on incomplete/fragmentary materials or incomplete descriptions, 2) most sites and some horizons preserve few taxa, and 3) the stratigraphy and geochronology are poorly understood. To help resolve these stratigraphic and correlation problems U-Pb LA-ICP-MS detrital zircon ages were obtained at significant sites and horizons. These dates indicate all sites at or near the base of the formation are no older than 122 to 124 Ma, thus all basal stratigraphic packages are time equivalent. Detrital zircons coarsely bracket the temporal span of the Ruby Ranch Member between about 115 Ma to 111 Ma while the base of the Mussentuchit Member is dated between 108 to 104 Ma and the top of the member is Cenomanian in age. Multivariate analyses utilizing Simpson and Raup-Crick similarity index and pair-group moving algorithms reveal that formationfs faunas fall into two groups. These groups are compared statistically with European, Asian, and Morrison faunas. Results indicate (1) that there is no close relationship between the Yellow Cat fauna and the Morrison Formation fauna and (2) corroborate long-standing hypotheses that the Yellow Cat fauna has European ties and the Mussentuchit fauna has Asian ties. Detrital zircon LA-ICP-MS U-Pb ages were used in this study to approximate the time of deposition of strata because volcanic ashes are rarely preserved in the formation. The ability to select the youngest crystals in a sample prior to applying analytical methods could substantially reduce the number of crystals and cost required to obtain these dates. To this end, the hypothesis that the most pristine, unabraded crystals should be younger than abraded crystals was tested by imaging detrital zircons via SEM, ranking the crystals by the degree of abrasion, and determining their ages. Results of this study partly corroborate the hypothesis in that there is a correlation between the degree of abrasion and ages – obviously abraded crystals are most likely the oldest while pristine to slightly abraded crystals are usually the youngest in a given sample.

The Jurassic Twist Gulch Formation of central Utah was deposited in the active Arapien sub-basin of the Western Cordillera foreland trough. We herein demonstrate the utility of integrating facies analysis, terrestrial sequence stratigraphy, and detrital zircon (U-Pb) ages to improve paleogeographic reconstructions as well as identify regional unconformities, locate fluvial depocenters, and infer sediment supply/accommodation space ratios. Strata of the Twist Gulch Formation in Pigeon Creek Canyon (PCC) near Levan, Utah consists primarily of alluvial deposits, while in Salina Canyon (SC) the Twist Gulch Formation is comprised of a mix of alluvial and marginal marine deposits associated with the Jurassic Western Interior Seaway. Within the PCC section, a change from high accommodation system (HAS) mudstones to low accommodation system (LAS) multi-storied channel sandstones and back to HAS deposits exists. This same pattern exists in the SC section but culminates with marine deposits. Terrestrial sequence stratigraphy predicts that the change from HAS to LAS deposits indicate a sequence boundary and thus an unconformity. The J-3 unconformity, a regional unconformity on the Colorado Plateau, separates strata of Callovian age from Oxfordian age in Utah. Using detrital zircons (U-Pb), the first radiometric ages were obtained for the Twist Gulch Formation. The J-3 unconformity is bracketed by detrital zircon (U-Pb) ages and stratigraphic relationships in the study area. These new ages suggest that the Twist Gulch Formation is time-equivalent to the Entrada Sandstone, Curtis, and Summerville formations of the Colorado Plateau. Further, integrating facies analysis, terrestrial sequence stratigraphy, and detrital zircon (U-Pb) ages predicts that the PCC section was an active depocenter during the early Oxfordian in which sedimentation outpaced accommodation space, prograding the Oxfordian shoreline of the Jurassic Western Interior Seaway shoreline eastward. This integration process also predicts that subsurface sandstones positioned above the J-3 unconformity on the west side of the Wasatch Plateau are of a different age, depositional system, and systems tract from subsurface sandstones on the east side of the Wasatch Plateau.

Published detrital zircon geochronological data was compiled to form the Global Detrital Zircon Database (GDZDb). This database provides a reference block for provenance analysis by future detrital zircon geochronological studies. This project entailed three subprojects: 1. crustal growth/crustal recycling patterns, 2. a provenance study of the Triassic Dry Fork Formation of the Danville-Dan River Rift basin of Virginia and North Carolina, and 3. sample size issues in detrital zircon studies. The global detrital zircon age frequency distribution exhibits six prominent, statistically significant peaks: 3.2-3.0, 2.7-2.5, 2.0-1.7, 1.2-1.0, 0.7-0.5, and 0.3-0.1 Ga. These peaks are also observed when the data is sorted for continent of origin, the tectonic setting of the host sediment and for modern river sediments. Hf isotope model ages were also incorporated into the database where grains were dated with both U-Pb and Hf isotopes. The Hf isotope model ages suggest that the majority of detrital zircons U-Pb ages reflect crustal recycling events that generated granitic magmatism, as most grains exhibited Hf isotope ages that are much older than the corresponding U-Pb age. The Triassic Dry Fork Formation was sampled from a site in southern Virginia in the Danville-Dan River Basin. The detrital zircon age frequency distribution for this formation was strongly unimodal with a peak at 400-450 Ma and a paucity of Grenville-age zircons. Comparison of the Dry Fork sample to published east coast data and to the North American record (from the GDZDb) illustrate the unusual nature of the Dry Fork Formation sample. It is probable that older Grenville zircons were blocked from the rift valley by the rift shoulder. Using the GDZDb a study of sample size was conducted in order to estimate the best sample size to use when trying to constrain the maximum age of sedimentation of the host sediment. Rift basins and active margins exhibited smaller offsets from the youngest zircon grain age to host sediment maximum age than observed in samples from passive margins. This study recommends that at least 50 grains need to be age dated on average in order to best constrain the age of the host sediment. / Ph. D.